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She rolled her eyes at herself. That was so far-fetched. It sounded more like the labyrinthine plot of a thriller than her ho-hum, everyday life. She didn’t have any enemies. More than half her employees had been with her for a long time. Rivals? Every restaurant competed against all the others. But she knew all the restaurant owners in the area. She couldn’t imagine any of them trying to destroy her business.
But it was hard to believe there were two separate, unrelated threats.
Nico pulled into her driveway and pressed the transponder to open the garage door. Once he’d parked, Julia slid out of the car, her legs stiff. She stepped onto the driveway, but Nico suddenly held out his arm. Pressed it against her ribs, holding her in place.
His muscles tensed. Coiled, as if readying for action. He reached down and removed his gun from its ankle holster. The rasp of leather against metal was shockingly loud in the sudden silence.
His head swiveling from side to side, he used his arm to ease her back into the cover of the garage. The garage door opener light flickered out, and as if he were beaming instructions directly into her brain, she edged further into the darkness. Didn’t move.
They both stood in the darkness, frozen, for the space of three heartbeats. Then she heard the tiny swish of a shoe against the grass. A choppy inhalation.
Someone was in her yard.
She swallowed the sour ball of fear that swelled in her throat. Whoever was there had been expecting her. Knew when she left work. Knew how long it took to get home.
And he’d waited for her in the darkness.
If Nico hadn’t been with her, she wouldn’t have known. Would have walked blithely to her back door. And would probably have been dead already.
Panic fluttered in her chest, sharp talons of terror gripping her. Squeezing tight.
She drew in a deep, shaky breath. Held it. Exhaled slowly. Did it again, trying to control the panic. The dread.
Nico was still motionless. He’d edged sideways until his body shielded her. After long moments when all she could see was his broad back, he turned his head slowly toward the darkness of her yard.
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted movement in her yard. A silhouette of blackness darker than the night moving toward her and Nico. He raised his hand. Nico flinched backwards moments before the intruder’s gun flashed fire.
Nico shoved her back into the garage with his left hand as he brought up his gun with his right. A burst of light exploded from the weapon a moment before she heard the sharp retort.
The dark figure flew backward. Tumbled to the ground. “Don’t move,” Nico ordered as he rushed toward the person on her lawn.
He kicked at something, and a gun flew toward her house. Then he crouched beside the figure on the ground and tried to pull up the hood.
A black-gloved hand gripped the mask, holding it in place.
Her hands shaking, Julia pulled her phone from her bag and dialed 911. When the dispatcher answered, she said, “This is Julia Stewart. There was a man with a gun waiting for me when I got home from work. He’s on the ground, but you need to come and get him.”
“What’s your address?” the dispatcher asked in a calm voice.
Julia recited it, then ended the call.
Nico stood up. “Let’s get you in the house. He’s wearing Kevlar. But being shot at close range hurts like hell, even with the vest. He’s down for a few more minutes, but making sure you’re safe is my priority.”
He stood up and drew her behind him. Walked her toward the house, keeping himself between her and the man lying on the ground. He didn’t take his gaze off the still figure until they were in the kitchen of her house.
“I heard you calling the police,” he said. “Thank you. Don’t move. I’ll be right back.” After a quick search through the house, he returned to the kitchen.
She nodded, her eyes drifting toward the figure on the lawn. His dark clothing and the lack of light made him difficult to see. Nico flipped the switch for the garage lights a few times, but nothing happened. “He loosened the light bulbs,” he said. “Just like that first night at the restaurant.”
She remembered what he’d said about finding the parking lot in darkness and the lightbulbs unscrewed. “You… you think it was the same guy?”
“Good chance,” he said. “I wanted to get that hood off him and see who it was, but getting you to safety had to come first.”
She heard the far-off wail of a siren. The police were on their way.
A few minutes later, a car stopped in front of her house and the siren abruptly quieted. Footsteps pounded down the driveway, and Nico waited until he saw the uniformed officers before he stepped outside.
The two officers were moving their flashlights over the grass. The bushes that bordered her yard. “Where’s this guy you shot?” one of them asked.
